Geared power unit



May 2 1939- w. P; SCHMITTER 2,156,739

GEARED POWER UNIT Filed Nov. 25, 1956 s sheetswsneet 1 TTORNY May 2 1939-- w. P. scHMlTTER 2,156,739

GEARED POWER UNI T Filed Nov. 23, 1956 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 g T15 O 'O O i w o /5 O Q V o o @o 5 o o I @o o o o@ GGO Z9 o o 50 o C@ o N c@ l i 6/ o o 6/ 3 "G o 5a F lul ul in l", 152g l i L) 2 l /lNENToR BY Muff/P f? JMW/U27? Q ATTORNEY Petenfed Mey 2, 1929'- GEARED POWER 'UNIT walter P. senmitter, Milwaukee, wie., assignmto The Falk Corporation, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Applioation November z3, 193s, serial No. 112,306

8 Claims.

This invention relates to a central geared driving unit for multiple oilwell pumps.

It is common practice in the oil fields to drive several. pumps from a singleoperatinghead connected thereto through suitable cables. A geared power unit for this purpose is shown in Patent No. 2,054,782, to Percy C. Day, issued September 15, 1936, comprising an operating head mounted upon a crank arm supported at the top end of a 10 vertical shaft driven at a low speed through appropriate gearing.

Several important objections may be noted to the power units commonly in use for this purpose. One of the chief 'of these is the difficulty l5 of assembling and mounting such large units under field conditions. It is common practice to set the lower portion of the housing of such a unit into a foundation of concrete or the like,

and then assemble the remainder within it. Be-

cause of the fact that the`upper portion of the housing serves also as a mounting means for the gear shafts, and because of the fact that lthe heavy crank arm and the heaviest gear are carried on the same shaft on opposite sides of the -upper half of the housing, it has heretofore been necessary to assemble al1 of the gears together with the upper half of the housing, and drop them as La unit into the lower part of the housing. Because of the tremendous' size and weight of such units, however, this manner of assem- -bling has been a matter of the greatest diiiiculty,

and the cost of dismantling the unit for repairs has been almost prohibitive. Moreover, when a change of the entire unit is necessary, it has been necessary to chop the housing out of its concrete foundation.

In addition, in units heretofore in use, the plan of assembly and the mounting have been of such a. permanent nature that changes in stroke or in power capacity have been of the greatest diiliculty. To change the stroke of the operating crank, it is usually necessary to disassemble the unit and to remove and replace the entire main crank shaft, which is made integral with the crank arm. In order Ato change the power capacity of the unit, itis often necessary to replace the unit with one of a different size, heretofore usually requiring breaking of the housing out of the foundation, and rebuilding the foundation to accommodate the diiierent sized unit.v

An object of the present invention is'to pro' vide an improved self-contained gearedpower unit ofthe type described. Another object is to provide such a unit which may be more easily and readily assembled under field conditions. f

nAnother object is to provide such a unit in which the various operating parts may be easily removed for repairs or replacement. 5 Another object is to provide an improved means for mounting such a unit. f I j Another object is to provide such a unit in which the moving parts may be readily and easily adjusted relative to each other to attain most l0 efficient service and prevent excessive wear.

Other objects and advantages will appear, ei:-l pressed or implied,` in the following ,description of a driving unit constructed inraccordance with the present invention. o l5 In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of a driving unit embodying this invention.

Fig. 2 is `a top plan view of the unit shown in' Fig. 1. V 20 Fig. 3 lis an end View of the unit shown in Fig. 1 with the sole plate for mounting it shown in section.

Fig. 4 le e. bottom view showing the method of attaching the lower portion of the housing to `25 Y the sole plate. a

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional view on the line 5 5 of Fig. 2, showing the arrangement of the oil pump.

The general arrangement of the power unit, 30 shown in the drawings, is similar to that of the patent identified above, and includes a housing` Il! comprising a lower casing Il and a cover I2. The lower casing Il forms a reservoir I3 which is filled with oil to the level indicated by they line 35 :Tournalled at one end of the vhousing I0 is a high speed driving shaft I 5 carrying at its inner end a bevel pinion i6. Shaft I5 is mounted uponl appropriate bearings I'Il and I8 carried by the 4r) Likewise journalled 'in the housing Il) is a vertical Vintermediate shaft I9, carrying at its center a pinion 20. Mounted on this shaft above the pinion is a-bevel gear 2| which meshes with 45 and is driven by the bevel pinion I6;

In order to provide proper adjustment and to l 'prevent back lash between the bevel vpinion I8 -end, however, the shaft I9 is supported by the double end-thrust tapered roller bearings 23 and l5 24. These bearings are mounted in a sleeve 25 fitted into an opening 26 in the cover I2 of the housing I0. An internal ring 21, screwedto the inside of the sleeve.25 near its top, serves to secure the bearings 23 and 24 within the sleeve.

The sleeve 25 is freely movable longitudinally in the supporting cover I2, but is positioned and supported therein by an outer ring 28, screwed around the top of the sleeve. This ring 28 rests upon the cover I 2, so that by simply turning the ring 28, the sleeve 25 and the shaft I9 supported thereby may be raised or lowered. By this means, the gear 2| may be accurately positioned with respect to the gear I6 and readily adjusted from time to time to compensate for wear.

A bearing cover 29 is provided which will completely cover all of the bearing parts after adjustment thereof, and provide a tightly sealed head to insure proper working of the lubricating system.

It will be noted that the shaft I9 is made symmetrica] with respect to the pinion 20, so that in case of wear the bevel gear 2| may be removed and the shaft turned end for end and reassembled.

Also mounted in-the housing I is a crank shaft 36 carrying a large gear 3| which meshes with and is driven by thevpinion 20 upon the intermediate shaft I9. Like the shaft I9, the shaft 30 may be adjusted longitudinally of its vertical axis, being moveable in its lower roller bearing 32 and being supported at its upper end by the double end thrust tapered roller bearings 33 and Ihese bearings are likewise mounted in a sleeve 35 and securely positioned therein by an innen ring 36 screw threaded inside of the top thereof.

The sleeve 35 is mounted in an opening 31 in the cover I2 of the housing, but is slidable vertically within the opening 31. The sleeve 35 and the shaft 30 are supported from the cover I2 of the housing by the ring 38 which is screwed around the outside of the top of the sleeve, and

whose lower edge bears against the cover I2. It

is thus possible to adjust the shaft 30 and its gear 3| vertically with respect to the housing, by turning the ring 38 on the sleeve to raise or lower the sleeve 35. y

Upon the top end of the shaft 30 is formed a flange or disc 39to which a crank army may be removably secured. It will be noted that this disc 39 has been made of a size small enough to pass through the opening 31 in the cover I2 of the housing. It is thus possible, to assemble the entire gear train within` the lower casing II, and to thereafter slip the cover I2 of the housing over the shaft bearings, after which the rings 28 and 38 may be screwed into place and the shafts I9 and 30 raised or lowered thereby to secure exactly the right adjustment of the gears.

Carried at the top of the crank shaft 30 is the crank arm 40 releasably but firmly secured to the flange or disc 39 by bolts 4I .and by the key 42. A wrist pin 43, mounted near the outer end of the crank 40, supports the operating head 44, which is mounted upon the wristv pin by the two end thrust tapered roller bearings 45 and 46. The

head 44 is .provided with the usual peripherar series of holes 41 for receiving conventional driving connections through which the several-pumps are driven from the. head.

By making the crank arm 40 separate from the crank :haft 30, there is secured not o nly the greater ease of assembly noted above, but also ease of replacement of the crank arm. In'this way the stroke of the crank may be changed without"disturbing the remainder of the unit or the adjustment of the heavy'gearing.

To provide a. tight lubricating system for pressure lubrication, all of the bearing joints are protected by seals, such as the head 48 over the -In the present case, this pump I is located below the level I4 of the oil in the reservoir I3 so that a constant supply of oil to the pump will be insured and so that there will never be necessity for prim- .ing the pump. The pump 5I is driven through a small pinion gear 52, preferably carried by the pump itself, and receiving its power from a larger gear 53 attached to the under side of the bevelled gear 2I on the shaft I9. Oil from the pump 5I discharges into a pressure chamber 5I from whence it is distributed, under pressure, to various moving parts of the unit, as in the patent identified above.

Novel mountingmeans is provided for the en- -tire unit. A sole plate 54 in the form of a beam or rail of metal is securely fastened to a foundation 55, preferably by imbedding it in concrete. The lower casing I I of the housing has a heavy metal flange 56 extending from it horizontally, at about the center line of the housing. The housing I0 is set into the sole plate 54 so that the lower casing II. extends down into a depression or recess 51 within the confines of the sole plate, and so that the entire unit is carried by the flange 56 which rests upon the sole plate 54. Corresponding bolt holes 58 on the flange 56 and the sole plate 54 are then brought into register, and heavybolts 59 are passed therethrough to securely fasten the housing to the sole plate.

By virtue of the novel mounting means described above, the entire unit, vor any of the parts thereof, may be easily and quickly removed when necessary for inspection or replacement. Moreover, by making units of various power capacities with the same size flange, it is relatively simple to exchange one unit for another of different capacity, without in any way damaging the units or disturbing the foundation.

It will be noted that both the lower casing II -and the cover plate I2, which is securely bolted thereto, are formed with heavy ribs 60 and 6I which add greatly to the strength of the housing I0. It may thus be seen that the housing I0 and the sole plate 54 provide a solid, secure mounting for the unit, capable of withstanding the terrific loads `imposed thereon. It will be `noted also that the flange, by which the unit is I claim:

1. In a driving unit, the combination of a bottom casing, a vertical crank shaft within said casing, speed reducing gearing including a gear upon said shaft, a bearing for the upper end of said shaft, a cover for said casing passable downwardly around said bearing and releasably secured to said casing, and means coacting with said shaft and said cover to suspend said shaft from said cover.

2. In a driving unit the combination of a bottom casing, a cover removably afxed thereto, a vertical crank shaft journalled in said casing at its/lower end, a gear on said shaft, a thrust bearing supporting the upper end of said shaft, a sleeve carrying said bearing and slidable through said cover, and a ring supported by said cover and engaged with said sleeve to thereby suspend said shaft.

3. In a driving unit the combination of a housing having a cover, a vertical shaft journalled at its lower end in said housing, speed reduction gearing including a gear on said shaft, a thrust bearing supportingthe upper end of said shaft,

a sleeve carrying said bearing and mounted in said cover for vertical movement, and a ring seated on said cover surrounding said sleeve and in screw threaded engagement therewith for adjusting said shaft and said gear vertically within said housing.

4. In a driving unit, the combination of a housing, a shaft in said housing, a bevel gear on said shaft having a face at an angle of more than 45 to said shaft, a bevel pinion engaged with said bevel gear, a thrust bearing for one end of said shaft, a sleeve supporting said bearing and mounted in said housing for movement axially of said shaft, and a ring seated on said housing surrounding said sleeve and in screw threaded engagement therewith, for adjusting said bevel gear relative to said lbevel pinion.

5. In a driving unit for oil wells the combination of a housing, a vertical crank shaft journailed in said housing, speed reducing gearing for driving said shaft, a cover for said housing passable downwardly around the end of said shaft and forming the only lateral bearing support for the upperend of said shaft', and a crank arm releasably secured to the upper end of said shaft above said cover.

6. In a driving unit for oil wells the combination of a housing, a removable cover for said housing, a vertical shaft journalled in said housing and said cover and projecting above said cover, speed reducing gearing in said housing for driving said shaft, a crank arm mounted on the projecting upper end of said shaft above said cover and projecting laterally over said cover, said crank arm being supported and centered by said shaft and being releasably secured thereto to permit removal of said crank arm and said cover.

7. In a driving unit the combination of a housing, a vertical shaft within said housing, speed reducing gearing including a gear on said shaft for driving the same, a disc at the upper end of said shaft, a cover for said housing passable downwardly around said dise and the end of said shaft,`said shaft being journalled at its lower end in said housing and having its upper end journalled in said cover Aand centered solely thereby, and a crank arm releasably secured to said disc.

8. In a driving unit for oil wells the combination of a housing,-a vertical shaft within the housing, driving means for said shaft, a removable cover for said housing passable downwardly around said shaft, said shaft being journalled at its lower end in said housing and at its upper end in said cover and being unsupported between said points, and crank means removably secured to the upper end of said shaft above said cover.

WALTER P. SCHMITTER. 

